March 29, 1987 | ROBERT A. JONES, Robert A. Jones is a Times staff writer.

A. J. Simmonds remembers the young man coming to his office. It was a warm April in 1980, what is known in Mormon country as an open spring, when a returned Mormon missionary marched through the doors of the archives at Utah State University. The archives are a peaceful place, lit by a huge picture window with a view of the city of Logan below. Simmonds looked up at the young man; he noticed a worn Bible tucked under his arm. Mark Hofmann sat down in Simmonds' cramped cubicle and produced the old Bible; then he produced something else.

The Ducks joined the rapidly growing list of teams testing the early resolve of the NHL's new discipline czar, Brendan Shanahan . Shanahan, the league's senior vice president of player safety, on Tuesday suspended Ducks winger J.F. Jacques for the remainder of the preseason and five regular-season games as a result of the incident with Canucks forward Mike Duco on Saturday at Vancouver. Though Jacques left the bench on a legal line change late in the third period, it was noted he went straight to Duco to start a fight, making no effort to join the play.

It was no surprise Anze Kopitar was the Kings' top preseason goal scorer, with five, and top scorer with eight points. But for winger Wayne Simmonds to share the goal-scoring lead was a revelation to a team that was starved for goals last season. Or was it? "No, I'm not surprised," Coach Terry Murray said Thursday after practice in El Segundo. "I love the way he finished off the year last year. The last 10 games of the season he was arguably one of our top three players on the team and he had a great summer.

Dwayne De Rosario, D.C. United's attacking midfielder/striker, quickly condemned the "undoubtedly racist incident," that took place on Thursday night in London. "Come ON!!!" De Rosario wrote on his Facebook page. You might have thought the Canadian-native DeRosario was deploring yet another racially charged action directed at a player on the pitch. But he wasn't talking about soccer. Nor was the London in question the soon-to-be host of the Summer Olympics, located across the pond.

Richey Electronics Inc. said it has completed its acquisition of Simmonds Capital Ltd.'s Simmonds Technologies Inc. unit, a Toronto-based distributor of electronic components. Richey said the acquisition could dilute its earnings in the third and fourth quarters this year. Richey refinanced Simmonds Technologies bank debt and issued to Simmonds Capital a warrant to purchase about 200,000 Richey shares at about $10 per share.

Wayne Simmonds arrived at Staples Center one evening in October unaware his biggest NHL opportunity was at hand. Kings teammate Justin Williams had suffered what Coach Terry Murray called a "lower-body issue" during the morning skate, leaving a void on the team's top line for that night's game against the Dallas Stars. But Simmonds hadn't heard. That's why the 21-year-old's eyes lit up when he walked into the team's dressing room before the game. Murray had written on the drawing board that Simmonds, or Simmer as his teammates call him, would take Williams' place alongside left wing Ryan Smyth and center Anze Kopitar.

The Kings' game against the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday will be an expensive occasion for right wing Wayne Simmonds , but he doesn't mind reaching deep into his pockets to subsidize his own rooting section. Simmonds will play in his hometown for the first time, and he's expecting about 15 people to attend the game and cheer for him. He said today his three brothers, his sister, his best friend's family, his parents and "a lot of buddies" are scheduled to watch him at the Air Canada Centre, where the average cost of a Maple Leafs ticket is $117.

Kendall Simmonds is living--and often limping--proof that soccer is a contact sport. Bruised ribs, fractured feet, sprained ankles. And don't forget the shins. "I have the worst shins ever," said Simmonds, a Royal High forward who is among the region's top players. "They have chunks taken out of them and bumps all over. It's like I got attacked by a cheese grater." Defenders have resorted to everything short of weaponry to slow down the 5-foot-8, 150-pound senior.

Kings tonight VS. PHOENIX When: 7:30. Where: Staples Center. On the air: TV: FS West. Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 24-21-1, Coyotes 23-15-9. Record vs. Coyotes: 0-2. Update: Right wing Wayne Simmonds, who missed the last two games because of an apparent ankle injury, practiced Wednesday and it is possible he will play Thursday. Left wing Ryan Smyth left practice early after being struck on the left calf by a puck, but that's not expected to keep him out of the game.

The NHL said Friday that the throwing of a banana from the stands during an exhibition hockey game involving a black player was "stupid and ignorant. " The banana was thrown from the crowd in London, Ontario, on Thursday as Philadelphia Flyers winger Wayne Simmonds , who is black, was skating toward the Detroit goal during a shootout. "We have millions of great fans who show tremendous respect for our players and for the game," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement.

Dean Lombardi believes the Kings' time is now, that the distance to their ultimate goal is shorter than the bumpy road they've traveled since he took over an organization that had no depth and no plan to escape the muck of mediocrity. He has assembled assets, built a balanced defense and — miracle of miracles — found legitimate goaltenders. The question now is whether he knows how to tell time. If Lombardi has read this right, acquiring center Mike Richards from the Philadelphia Flyers for the hefty price of top prospect Brayden Schenn, gritty winger Wayne Simmonds and a second-round pick in the 2012 draft will significantly boost a team that took a small but definite step back last season.

Brad Richardson, Wayne Simmonds and Kyle Clifford sat side by side by side in the locker room at the Kings' El Segundo practice facility before they were united on the ice, so they perfected the timing of their passes only after they had polished their comedic timing. After weeks of idle chat before and after practices, they came up with roles and nicknames for themselves. "You know those old Westerns? Richie's like the cell guard," Clifford said. "He's always leaning back in the chair guarding the prisoners.

Center Anze Kopitar is not injured. Nor is illness the reason he has no goals in his past 10 games and two in his last 25. "Everything's good," he said. Except that scoring drought. "No," he said, "that's awful. " Hoping to stir Kopitar out of his doldrums, Coach Terry Murray mixed up his lines again for Saturday's game against the Washington Capitals. Kopitar will center for Michal Handzus and the also-slumping Wayne Simmonds , who has no goals in his last 10 games and one in 18. Rookie Andrei Loktionov moves from left wing to his natural center spot, between Kyle Clifford and Dustin Brown . The reliable Ryan Smyth - Jarret Stoll - Justin Williams line remains intact and the fourth line is likely to again be made up of Alexei Ponikarovsky , Trevor Lewis and Kevin Westgarth . "It's one of those days again with different line combos.

Kings tonight VS. PHOENIX When: 7:30. Where: Staples Center. On the air: TV: FS West. Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 24-21-1, Coyotes 23-15-9. Record vs. Coyotes: 0-2. Update: Right wing Wayne Simmonds, who missed the last two games because of an apparent ankle injury, practiced Wednesday and it is possible he will play Thursday. Left wing Ryan Smyth left practice early after being struck on the left calf by a puck, but that's not expected to keep him out of the game.

After losing three of four on the road and dropping out of first place in the Pacific Division, the Kings know they have to generate more offense, particularly with the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks up next. To shake things up, Coach Terry Murray changed his top line at practice Friday in El Segundo, moving Wayne Simmonds up from the the third line to play right wing and switching Dustin Brown to left wing. Anze Kopitar will continue to center that line.

Brad Richardson, Wayne Simmonds and Kyle Clifford sat side by side by side in the locker room at the Kings' El Segundo practice facility before they were united on the ice, so they perfected the timing of their passes only after they had polished their comedic timing. After weeks of idle chat before and after practices, they came up with roles and nicknames for themselves. "You know those old Westerns? Richie's like the cell guard," Clifford said. "He's always leaning back in the chair guarding the prisoners.

KINGS TONIGHT AT MINNESOTA When: 5 PDT. Where: Xcel Energy Center. On the air: TV: Versus; Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 5-2-0, Wild 3-3-1. Record vs. Wild (2009-10) : 2-2-0. Update: The Kings had Sunday off after an early morning arrival from Colorado, where they had won for the fourth time in five games. General Manager Dean Lombardi said he had not heard from the NHL regarding a possible suspension for right wing Wayne Simmonds, who was assessed a major penalty for butt-ending and a game misconduct in Saturday's 6-4 victory at Colorado.